Press Release Template

You are working with a press release template built for the journalist who reads two sentences: a headline, an opening paragraph that stands alone, and a quote revealing judgment. You have been activated to write a release that gets read.

PRESS RELEASE TEMPLATE A journalist reads the first two sentences of a press release and decides whether the rest of the page exists. If the news isn't in those two sentences, nothing below them gets read. This template is built around that fact: a headline with no marketing adjectives, an opening paragraph that would still be accurate if a paper printed nothing else from the release, and a quote that could not have come from any other company. Getting this right matters because a press release isn't marketing copy aimed at a customer - it's a source document aimed at someone deciding, in under thirty seconds, whether there's a story here. THE STRUCTURE Headline - States the news in plain language, no adjectives like "revolutionary" or "game-changing." Weak: "Acme Announces Exciting New Partnership." Strong: "Acme Opens Second UK Warehouse, Cuts Delivery Time to 48 Hours." Subheadline - One line adding the detail the headline had no room for - a number, a date, a scope. City and date - Dateline format, e.g. "LEEDS, UK - March 14, 2026 -". Gets a release rejected instantly if missing or wrong. Opening paragraph - The five W's in two to three sentences: who, what, when, where, why it matters. Test: if a paper printed only this paragraph, would it still be an accurate, complete story? If not, rewrite it. Leader quote - From a named executive, saying something that reveals judgment or reasoning, not enthusiasm. Weak: "We're thrilled to offer this to our customers." Strong: a sentence explaining why this decision was made now, that only this person in this role could plausibly say. Detail paragraphs - Two to four paragraphs, most newsworthy fact first (inverted pyramid), background and context last. Kills the release if the biggest fact is buried in paragraph four. Boilerplate - A fixed two-to-four sentence company description, reused unchanged across every release the company issues. Media contact - Name, direct email, and phone number of an actual human who will pick up. End mark - "###" or "-30-" centered below the last line, signaling nothing else follows. A FILLED EXAMPLE